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Risk management. Few like to think about it. Many put off unpleasantries like risk management planning, crisis communication plans, and remediation plans. And, let’s face it, no one likes to get the call from the risk manager saying, “We need to talk.”

Marketing is fun, and sales are exciting. Development is interesting. But communication and risk management plans often suffer from neglect…until the crisis comes. When you consider that the real test of a business is how well they can weather the storm, you can see the significance of this gap.

Are you, as a leader, giving proper attention to the matter of risk?

The key is to be prepared ahead of time. Doing so considerably lessens the impact and can make the difference between disaster and a proverbial speed bump. Mitigation is much less costly than remediation.

Risk management isn’t just for one small group in the company. It is for everyone, because everyone has vested interest in the viability of the company.

This is a point many leaders miss. It is the value of tapping into their full reserve of talented employees.

Each person on your team and in your business has a set of unique strengths, skills, and experience. This gives them individual perspective. As you tap into the perspective of each person, you gain greater perspective on the organization as a whole. In terms of the four key strengths of D-I-S-C, you will gain valuable insights.

D’s will help you see where results are starting to lag. They will be able to identify backlogs, unmet goals, and unproductive areas.

I’s are key for recognizing team or customer issues before they escalate. They will also help you see where innovation and new ideas are needed.

S’s will spot inefficiencies in systems, and because people confide in them, they will know a problem exists before you do. If an S-wired person says, “You might want to check into this,” you need to check into it.

C’s will quantify numbers and identify unhealthy trends. They monitor compliance issues and are adept at identifying quality control issues.

How would this work in a business scenario?

A C-wired employee comes to management and says, “There are some new regulations coming out, and XYZ facility will soon be out of compliance. In addition, maintenance is needed in order to accommodate the increased production.”

A D-wired employee says, “XYZ facility is not meeting its production goals.”

An S-wired employee says, “I think you should know that the floor manager at XYZ is having some issues with their operations, and they are frustrated that they can’t meet expectations.”

And the I-wired employee will say, “If XYZ facility had some new equipment, they could crank out this proposed new product idea really fast.”

A good leader would quickly realize that the XYZ facility needs some definite attention in the areas of compliance upgrades, equipment upgrades, and operations.

A bad leader will ignore the valuable perspectives provided by his or her team, and let it go unmitigated. The result: costly remediation, fines, and lost productivity.

What can you do as a leader to mitigate issues in business?

1. Tap into grassroots perspective.

There are leaders at every level of the organization. Be sure you get grassroots perspective. These are the leaders who see the flicker before it becomes a flame.

2. Tap into cross-departmental perspective.

Keep your ear to the ground on marketing, sales, development, IT, finances, administration, customer service, and legal. You may have someone in one department who sees a small issue they think is insignificant. But if you hear it from other departments, this gives you an indicator that something needs attention.

3. Tap into your own strengths perspective.

There are some people who seem to have a certain “business sense.” They seem to know something before it happens. This “business sense” comes from tapping into your own strengths.

• • • If you are a D-wired leader, you will know when something is stalled.
    • If you are an I-wired leader, you will be the first to sense when a product or promotion has become “stale.”
    • If you are an S-wired leader, you will be the first to pick up on team or system issues.
    • And if you are a C-wired leader, you will know when something isn’t right.

Good “business sense” is simply paying attention to what your strengths are indicating to you.

Getting input from all levels and all strengths types gives you full perspective, not only regarding what is going right in the company; but, also, what could potentially go wrong.

Mitigation is much less costly than remediation. The adage that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is true. And prevention begins with communication.

Are you tapping into the mitigation power of your team?

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For more resources on how you can gain greater insights from your team, click here to learn about the Maxwell Method of Communication Impact Report.

As the CEO of Strength Leader Development, Deb Ingino is a highly sought-after international executive mentor, coach, trainer and speaker. Deb is well versed in global business operations and helps business leaders and their teams to discover and leverage their strengths, so they can create highly collaborative teams that deliver great results. With a refreshingly direct style, Deb helps leaders and their teams to deliver profitable results. Connect with Deb to learn more about her mentorship and coaching programs to equip you with advanced strategies to elevate your results.

When you have a strong team that collaborates well,
you have a competitive advantage.

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